Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi is set to hold a joint telephone call with his French, British, and German counterparts on Friday to discuss stalled nuclear negotiations and the threat of renewed sanctions, state news agency IRNA reported.
The three European powers have warned that they may trigger the United Nations’ “snapback” sanctions mechanism if Tehran refuses to return to talks over its nuclear programme. Along with the United States, they maintain that Iran’s activities could be aimed at developing nuclear weapons.
Tehran, however, has consistently rejected those accusations. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has assessed that Iran remains far from developing a nuclear bomb, and in March, US national intelligence director Tulsi Gabbard told lawmakers that intelligence services had found no evidence of active weaponisation efforts.
Tensions escalated sharply after the United States and Israel carried out strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities in June, prompting Tehran to suspend negotiations with Washington. Since then, IAEA inspectors have been denied access to Iranian sites, a move IAEA chief Rafael Grossi has described as deeply concerning.
According to Iranian state media, Araqchi’s discussions with European officials will specifically address the possible activation of the snapback mechanism, which would reimpose international sanctions previously lifted under the 2015 nuclear accord.
Separately, an Iranian delegation is expected to travel to Vienna on Friday for talks with IAEA officials, though details of the planned meetings have not been disclosed.
Melissa Enoch
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